Journal-box.



E. W. SUMMERS.

JOURNAL BOX.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 12, 19l6. 1 215 743. Patented Feb. 13,1917. 9 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

FIG-.8

a A a i! A a R Z9 Z4 Z5 WITNESSES 2g INVENTOR E. W. SUMMERS.

JOURNAL BOX.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 12, l9l6.

Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES EDGAR W. SUMMERS, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

JOURNAL-BOX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

Original application filed April 15, 1916, Serial No. 91,342. Divided and this application filed June 12, 1918.

Serial No. 103,164.

7 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDGAR W. SUMMERS, a resident of Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Journal-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to journal boxes for railway cars. The object is to provide a journal box of simple and cheap construction so formed as to permit the tension member of an arch bar truck to pass very close to the center of rotation of the axle, and thereby enable the load to be brought down very low above the center of rotation of the axle and permit the neutral axes of the tension and compression members of the truck frame to intersect directly above the center of rotation. A further object of the invention is to provide a journal box so designed as to reduce the height of the box, and to dispense with the usual wedge or key between the journal bearing and the roof of the box. A further object of the invention is to provide a journal box so'designed as to permit of the ready removal of the axle, and providing means for making substantially dust-tight seals at the joints and openm s.

I urther objects of the invention will appear from the description and claims hereinafter made.

This application is a division of my application filed April 15, 1916, Serial No. 91,342.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is an outside end View of thejournal box, with the lid removed and showing the box in its relation to the end of the truck side frame; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same; Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through the journal box and through the end portion of the side frame, on the line 44, Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a transverse section on the line 55, Fig. 4; Fig. 6.is an outside end elevation of the journal box showing the lid in place; Fig. 7 is a plan View of one-half of the lower section of the journal box; Fig. 8 is an enlarged verticalsection through the lid; and Fig. 9 is a side elevation of the journal hearing or brass.

The side frame 1 is provided at its end portion with a rentrant portion 2, which is formed on the arc of a circle and which provides in effect flaring shallow pedestal jaws to receivethe journal box. Thejournal box, at least on its upper surface, is circular in cross sectlon, and, symmetrically of the portion over the axle journal, is substantially of the ,form of. two truncated cones with their bases united at the central transverse zone of the box, so that said box loosely fits in the reentrant portion 2 of the side frame and has a bearing against said frame only at its central'zone, thus permitting it to rock either in a horizontal or vertical plane, so as to be at all times in alinement with the axle journal 4 to compensate for inequalities of track and yielding of the truck frame. In order to hold said journal box ag'ainst r0"- tation and also against displacement, the reentrant portion 2 in the side frame at its central zone is provided with a recess 5, the top of which is substantially straight or horizontal from end to end, transversely of the axis of the journal box, as shown in Fig. 5, and the top of the journal-box at its central zone is provided with an upward projection 6 having ahorizontal top and extending into said recess and having a hearing against the top thereof. This projection is slightly higher than -the top of the box immediately outside and inside of-the same, and is located at the central transverse zone of the box, that is to say, substantially at the meeting of the bases of the two truncated cones, and midway of the length'of 'the bearing in said box, so that the side frame has bearing on the box only at its middle portion, thus permitting the box to rock slightly on its central zone, as above described, and the load is carried entirely at the central transverse zone of the box (the box having no direct contact with the side frame at its end portions), as a result of described. This emergency connection is located at the inner or rear end of the journal box, which is an advantage when the truck side frame, together with the journal boxand axle, is lifted, as it brings the suspension of the journal box and axle more directly over the load than when the emergency connection is located at the outer end of the journal box,.as will be apparent.

With the improved box the usual wedge or key is omitted, and the journal hearing or brass 14 fits directly against theroof of the box, in such manner that the bearing is supported for substantially its entire length by direct bearing against the top of the box. The bearing is held in place by being provided midway of its length with upwardly projecting portions or lugs 16 which extend into'po'ckets or recesses 17 formed in the roof of the box at its central zone, and which recesses are made possible because ofthe upwardly projecting portion or lug 6 on the top of the box. The bearing has both its inner and outer surfaces of semicircular shape in cross section, but with the upper surface struck from the center farther out than its inner surface, and consequently eccentric thereto and providing a bearing thicker at its longitudinal middle'portion than at its edge portions.

The journal box illustrated is formed in two separable sections, the line of division being substantially at the horizontal plane of the center of the axle, and said sections are united by means of pins 21 extending through perforated lugs 22 on the bottom section and similar lugs 23 on the top section. If either pin is removed, the bottom section will swing downwardly around the other pin as a hinge. The meeting faces of the two sections are formed sinuous, so as to provide grooves or gutters 24 in the bottom section, said faces being so formed that the walls 25 of the inner sides of said grooves are lower than the walls 26 on the outer sides of said grooves in order that the oil tions, this pocket is entirely inclosed, that is,

inclosed at the top as well as at the bottom and sides. The grooves or gutters 24 in the bottom. section open into this dust-guard pocket, and the inner wall 28 of said pocket is lower than the outerwall 29 thereof, so

' that any oil which flows from the grooves or gutters 24 into the pocket, will flow into the box instead of to the outside.

The interior of the dust-guard pocket 27 is circular in transverse section, and consequently the dust guard 30 can rotate to some extent and hence carry the oil which accumulates in the bottom of the pocket, all around, so that the oil, togetherwith the dust which naturally is caught by the oil, forms a practically tight seal at the rear end of the box. Dust will also be caught by the oil which will work into the grooves or gutters 24, and thus form a substantially tight seal along the meeting edges of the two sections of the box. Oil will almost certainly t into the grooves 24 and from the same 1nto the dust-guard pocket, as it will naturally be carried up by the rotation of the axle and be scraped oif from the axle by the side edges of the bearing 14, from which it will flow by gravity and capillary attraction into the joints between the two sections of the box, and together with the dust which it will collect or hold, forms a 7 gummy seal. The dust guard 30 is preferably of fibrous construction, such as being built up from layers of canvas or the like, which can be held between sheet metal rings 31.

Theouter end of the journal box is closed by a circular lid 32 which is united at its center by means of stud 33 to a lever 34 hinged to lugs 35 on the top of the box. The lever 34 carries a spring 36 hearing against 8 a cam-faced lug 37 on the journal box,by means of which the lid will be held either in tightly closed position or in open or elevated position, as is common in journal box lids. This lid is provided on its peripheral 9 edge with a suitable asket 38, which, also, preferably will be 0% fibrous construction, such as formed of layers of canvas held by a wire ring 39 which is suitably clamped in the edge of said lid. The opening at the 9 outer end of the box is surrounded by a broad inclined face, as shown clearly in Fig. 8, and the fibrous gasket 38 is so mounted in the lid that its free. edge bears against .this inclined face. This enables the gasket 1 to tightly seal the opening even though there should be quite material irregularities in the face surrounding the lid opening.

The journal bearing of brass 14 at its ends is substantially of semi-circular form, thus 1 bringing it down practically to the center'of the axle, and providin about 50% more end thrust bearing than rasses as heretofore constructed, which prevents the brasses from wearing as rapidly as brasses as heretofore 1 made, and increasing the life thereof. With standard journal boxes it is not possible to make a bearing of such shape as to come down to the center of the axle, as it is im-' possible to remofethe bearing if made that 1 large, but with a, searable box, such as illustrated and described, this difliculty is entirely avoided andv the bearing can be made to extend down on the sides of the'axle to or beyond the center. 'The edges of the 1 bearing for a portion of the length thereof, are preferably beveled downwardly and outwardly, as shown at 40, Fig. 5, in order to positively direct the oil carried up by the bearing down into the joints between the 1 two sections of the box, in order to provide the gummy seal heretofore referred to. The lugs 16 on the brass are located midway of its length, so that the brass can be turned end for end, if desired. 1

By having the top of the box rounded off, the tension member of the truck side frame can be made to pass very close to the center of rotation of the axle, and this, together with the fact that the ordinary wedge or key is omitted, enables the box as a whole to be made very low and the end of the side frame brought down very low relative to the center of the axle. Because the box has the circular top described with a bearingonly at its central transverse zone, the usual wedge or key can be dispensed with, asthe box itself will have the necessary rocking movement in the seat in the side frame. By making the box of separable sections, the bearing can be made to extend farther down on the sides of the axle than with standard forms of journal boxes, and can be readily removed and replaced with only a moderate lifting of the truck side frame and the journal box.

What I claim is 1. In combination, a journal box having its top circular on its inner surface and provided with a recess transverse to said circular surface and extending upwardly there: of, and a bearing having a circular upper surface and a transverse key portion extending upwardly from said-circular top surface and into the recess in the box.

2. In combination, a journal box having a circular inside wall'to its top and a transverse recess extending upwardly from said circular wall, and a bearing having its upper face conforming to the circular inside wall of the top of the box and provided midway between its ends with a key portion extending transversely thereof and extending into the recess in the top of the box.

3. In combination, a journal box having its top circular on its inner surface and provided with a recess extending upwardly from said circular surface, and a bearing having its inner surface conforming to the circular axle and having its outer surface formed on a circle struck from a center 10-. cated farther out than the center from which the inner surface bearing is struck and provided with a projection extending upwardly from its outer circular surface and fitting in the recess in the top of the box.

4. In combination, a journal box having its top circular on its inner surface and provided with a recess extending upwardly from said circular surface, and a bearing having its inner surface conforming to the circular axle and having its outer surface circular and eccentric to its inner surface and provided with a projection extending upwardly from its outer circular surface and.

fitting in the recess the top of the box,

said bearing being thicker at its longitudi- -nal center than at its edges.

verse bearing portion and having its inner top wall circular and provided midway of the length of the journal bearing with recessesextending upwardly from said circular surface, and a journal bearing having itsouter surface circular to fit against the circular inside top wall of the box and provided midway of its length with upwardly.

projecting lugs extending into said recesses.

7.A railway car journal box formed in separable top and bottom sections having their meeting facesv shaped to form ribs on the top section and gutters or grooves in the bottom section for receiving said ribs.

8. A railway car journal box formed in separable :top and bottom sections having their meeting faces shaped to-form gutters or grooves in the bottom section, the inner wall of said grooves being lower than the outer wall.

9. A railway car journal box formed in a separable top and bottom sections and being provided with a closeddust-guard pocket having inner and outer walls, the meeting faces of said sections being shaped to form gutters or grooves in the bottom section opening into said dust-guard pocket, whereby. an oil. and dust seal is formed at the dust-guard.

10. A railway car journal box formed in separable top and bottom sections having their meeting faces shaped to form gutters or grooves in the bottom section, the inner wall of said grooves being lower than the outer wall, said box being provided with a closed dust-guard pocket having its inner wall of less height than its outer-wall.

- In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

-EDGAR W. SUMMERS.

Witnesses:

GLENN H. LERESGHE, C. B. SANDERSON. 

